Which Stroller Will Work Best for a 19 Month Old and Newborn?

I have the Joovy Ergo Caboose and I love it. It's a little heavy, but most double strollers are. When my daughter was still in the carrier, she sat closest to me in the carrier and my son sat in the front sit. Now, he sits or stands closest to me (and LOVES to stand) and she sits in the front. He doesn't mind being in the back- it's not like he is down low like in the Phil and Ted. He loves being able to jump up and off. My kids are 18 months apart.

I also have the BOB duallie for jogging. LOVE it for jogging, but the basket under the seat is horrible for outings and it is heavy/bulky to put in the car.

I looked at the bumbleride indie twin and really loved it, but since it isn't recommended for true jogging, I knew we'd need two dbl strollers anyway, so decided to go with the BOB and Joovy.

I would recommend the Baby Trend Sit and Stand LX. It is a double stroller that converts to a sit and stand when and if you need it to. My 4 year old STILL prefers to be strollered we have yet to convert it!

I just had a baby a month ago and I have a 20 month old daughter. My husband and I decided to go with the Bob Revolution duallie. I have used it quite a bit and LOVE it. It is sooooo easy to push and my girls love it. My 20 month old daughter has fallen asleep in it too! We had to get the car seat adapter for it, for the new baby, but this stroller was the one we fell in love with from the start. Its great for walks and runs and fits through most doors at the mall and at disneyland. Hope this advice helps and good luck with your new baby! P.S. we found ours on EBAy.

Hi S.,
I have a 2 year old son and 5 month old daughter. They're 19 months apart. I currently have a Graco - Quattro Tour Duo Tandem Stroller. I love it. It is a little heavy, BUT I can click my daughter's car seat in either the front or back. I purchased mine from Walmart.com. They're prices are MUCH better than many other places. I'm going to get the Graco - Ipo Twin Lightweight Stroller later on once my daughter is out of her infant car seat. Best wishes. Hope this helps.

Don't feel silly. Having the perfect stroller for your needs can often feel like an extra set of hands or more! When I had my second child we bought a cheap double stroller (jogging stroller) - kids were newborn and 2 years old. I was using it so often (daily) but didn't LOVE it. Front wheel didn't swivel, storage was weak, it was heavy and so on... so we broke down and purchased the BOB Revolution Duallie - LOVE IT!! Used it a ton, still have it even though the kids are 4 and 6 because we take to the zoo, Disneyland, places where we'll be out all day so we can lug our stuff around and the kids have a place to sit. My friend Kelly owns an online stroller company, she lives in Murrieta and right now her BOB strollers are on sale! www.joggermom.com

Best wishes!
M.

The sit and stand Elite from One Step Ahead is what I use. I have an 18 month old and a 5 week old. The difference between the Elite and the regular Sit and Stand is that there is a back seat for your 18 month old to use (just like a regular stroller seat) and the seat removes to provide them with the sit-stand space when they are old enough for it. It has been a great stroller for us - I can even remove the seat for short trips and my daughter does just fine with standing on the board. I have a double jogger also, but it does not accomodate an infant seat and until my youngest is bigger it is not even safe to put them in the seat without the car seat. Just my two cents but I looked at a million double strollers and found this was a great solution.

I have twins and I loved my Kolcraft countours tandem. It is super easy to switch between using with your carrier and the stroller seat(although you have to store the seat in your car) Some people feel the seats are too small for toddlers so you may want to try it out in the store.. Babies-r-us carries it. Even though mine still fit it fine, now that they are older we do use a side by side jogging stoller alot more often so they both have a view. Good luck

The BOB is worth every penny!!!!!!!!!

Hi S.,
I have been going to Stroller Strides and everyone swears by the double BOB. I have the single and love it and plan on getting the double. It has a converter so you can put your newborn in too.

We have the BOB Revolution dualie stroller and love it. We thought we could put two attachments in for infant seats, but found out you can only put in one...but that would work fine for your situation. We have 5 month old twins who are a bit small and when we put them in the stroller, we also put their body supports from their car seats. Sort of a pain, but now that they're bigger, I tried using only the head supports (just yesterday) and they did fine. It's so easy to push and the large tires make it great for strolling around gardens (we were at Huntington yesterday). It's also high quality, so we hope that this one stroller will last us until they outgrow it.

Just an idea, I own a company called West Coast Wagons in Burbank, CA. We customize wagons for kids, and you can also design your own. If you want to skip the stroller, I suggest the Wood ATW Radio Flyer, which fits 2 kids, but you can still pick up to put in a vehicle. You can customize your padding, and if your older onw wants to walk while the newborn takes a nap, you are set! Check out our website at WestCoastWagons.com, or find us on facebook! Have a great day & CONGRATS!

Hi there.

I have a four year old and 10 month old...we have the Peg Perego Twin Aria...it's lightweight, easy to open and close, both kids can fully recline and it's side by side. Love it.

-M

I have a City Series Jogger, I LOVE IT. My kids are 22m, 19m, 2y3m,3y and 2y3m apart..(6) I have had several in line, I do not like because one seat never goes back far enough for the child to rest and at some point the legs get too long or they out grow the seat. Stearing is hard when you have the bigger one in front(because the youngest needs to lay down in the back) but you can't steer..the weight should(is made) to be in the rear. Not sure what kind of activity you do, but this works for amusement parks, shopping, running,off-roading. EVERYTHING. I have had it five years, the ONLY thing wrong with it now, is the gripper handle is coming off..that is it. I use it ALL THE TIME! My kids push it (super easy) steering is either locked or swivel they pile on. I have had 5 in it at one time, one on top of another, no problems! the wheels are rubber air filled, shocks. It fits into 99% of the doors. My front door standard size! Some isles in stores not so well, but usually get it in. I have spent $$$$on different strollers and wish I would have got this years ago. Could have bought a car by now;) This is a pricy one but you wont need another. My kids all still want to ride depending on what we are doing...my oldest 2 can not, but the 7y down to 19m do. We are busy active family and this stroller has saved many of backs! This link is for the mini (I have the regular one) but you can have the car seat adapter for either, this one is less expensive, I do not know how well it holds up.
http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Jogger-Car-Seat-Adaptor/dp/B00...
This is for the "regular" one I have
http://www.joggingstroller.com/Baby-Jogger-City-Series-Do...
Some people say their kids never rode...maybe the stroller was not comfortable I do not know, I do know that with the 6 I have (3ofeach) they ALL at some point WANT to ride...enjoy your stroller shopping. Take the children out and have them sit in the strollers in the store and try driving it have bigger kids sit in the stroller you want, just like a car seat, they change shape and lengths on the body parts and it is definitely different with the weight, so sometimes the fit is not a good one, with other kids of different ages(if possible) it really does help see the difference. The handle on the City Series Double moves up and down for shorter drivers or taller ones. I have no complaints about this stroller. My 7yr old is getting a bit too tall for it(his head is starting to touch the canopy) but normally you don't push a 7yr old...only at Sea World after the day is up!(usually the older ones sit on the foot rest and get a "ride" back to the car:) I never used the infant seat..I used the bundle me..lite for summer and regular for winter, but the sway of the seat seems to put them back out if they happen to wake..

I am expecting my second to be born any day now and my toddler just turned 2 last week, so they aren't as close in age as yours, but my toddler will still require a stroller for awhile. I got the baby trend sit and stand stroller (in skylar.) It is affordable. My mom found it for only $134 on sale. Usually it was $179. It has two seats, but the back one can eventually be taken off for a jump seat if you want. I'm sure it will be awhile before I use that feature. I have an evenflo carseat that I thought would fit well in the back, but it just didn't feel as secure as it felt in the front. Originally I was against putting the baby's carseat in the front, but once I put it there I realized it was the better choice. My toddler will still be able to see out from the backseat and he can "help" me keep an eye on baby brother. The stroller obviously feels longer than a single, so when I imagined my toddler in the front seat with the baby in back once I put the stroller together, I felt like I would be too seperated from my toddler with the big bulky carseat in between us. This stroller also has a two removable child trays, a parent organizer, and a basket underneath. I have the single baby trend version too and it is very sturdy and easy to turn. I also was able to put together the stroller by myself in about 5 minutes, so easy! It folds down well too to fit in the car. I researched strollers for months and months before deciding on this one so don't feel silly about wanting to find the right stroller!

Hi S.-
I was in the same predicament, because my kids are just under 20 months apart. I have a side by side jogger that someone gave me for free (used) that I use for walking/jogging just in our neighborhood, but it's too big to really take anywhere. What I used (and still do, sometimes w/ my now 3 yr old & 18 month old!) is Graco's duo glider. I had my older one in the front, younger in the back in his infant seat. Once he was older, sitting up, etc., I usually would put him in front, b/c sitting in back of his sister's curly hair was just too much of a temptation! The back seat fully reclines (which my 3 yr old has napped in too!), and the front seat semi-reclines. They are generally not too expensive, I actually bought mine used on craigslist for $50. Like you, I just wasn't sure what I wanted, and didn't want to invest too much in case I didn't like it.

Good luck!

I love my Peg Perego Aria side by side. I got it used on Craigslist for a great price. The only time it's not easy is in older stores but it's the same width as a wheelchair so it should fit through all doors.

Good Luck !!!!!!!!

I don't think it is silly at all to be concerned with this. I have 2 boys, 15 mos apart, and a double stroller was an absolute necessity for me (unless I wanted to go completely insane). And I had such a terrible time finding a stroller that was worth what it cost. I couldn't see spending over $200 for a stroller (and that is almost the minimum for a double) but I tried several different strollers for that price and they were awful. I wanted a stroller that I could use for long walks, on difficult terrain sometimes, and something I could use for shopping. I tried the Schwinn (not a bad stroller, easy to turn, but too wide to fit through some doors - no good for shopping - and the seats weren't so great - my baby fussed in it constantly). I tried the Kolcraft Contours (a BEAST to push, both of my boys hated it for long walks, and not good for any terrain other than solid concrete).

I think you have to decide what you want to use the stroller for and how much use you will get out of it. I finally bought the Valco Baby TriMode Twin. Quite a strain for our budget for $670 (that was the going price for a new one when I bought mine) but it has been worth every penny. My boys are 4 years old and 3 years old now, so I don't use it so much anymore, but it is still great to have around, and I used it daily for quite a long time. My boys have always been happy as could be sitting in it(not endlessly of course), it is wonderful to push (even with 2 heavy boys now), and my husband could even use it for jogging. It is the best money we ever spent. It is bulky when folded, but all of the double strollers I looked at were - you can't get around it. You could look for a used one on eBay or craigslist - maybe someone is ready to move theirs along.

Good luck and congratulations!

I really LOVED our Bob Revolution Duallie. My friend had 3 or 4 different double strollers and fell in love with my Duallie.

For our active lifestyle, the Bob was the best for us. My kids are 4 and 2. So when my DD came along my son just turned 2. He would have hated being the back seat, so the eliminated any Sit and Stand ones or the Phil and Teds. We never used the carseat attachment, we just took DD out of the carseat and put into the stroller once she was over 10lbs (so around 2 months). I'd say I used the Duallie as my everyday stroller for about 1.5 years. Now I just use my single Bob Revolution stroller since usually one kid will walk. We do still use the Duallie for family walks or jogs. You can get some good deals on the Bob strollers at rei.com during Memorial weekend and Labor Day weekend. Normally the Duallie is $525 w/o shipping or the handle bar console or the snack tray/infant carseat bar. We bought ours during the Memorial Day weekend sale online for $450 plus the handle bar console for $20 (usually $35) with free site to store shipping. Then when we picked it up, they assembled it for us. Occasionally I see them on craigslist, but they go FAST!

If you have a USA Babystore near you, I highly suggest going their and test driving all the strollers. They had the best selection of double strollers when I was in the market for one.

It depends what you are using it for...
For me, being able to attach the infant carrier was a must--like you said, not have to wake the baby.

If you do a lot of shopping, you might prefer a the inline model but for walks and parks, the side by side is easier. With such young children (mine are 16 months apart), the sit-n-stand won't be as useful.

I have a Bumbleride Indie Twin (comparable to a Bob dualie) and LOVE it! It has 2 front (lockable) swivel wheels which turn on a dime and it is SOOO easy to push I can do it with one finger. It comes with the bar to attach the infant seat too.

If you can get decent $$ by selling the one you have, I'd recommend that.

Hi S.,

The stroller question is always a hard one and is so individual! From your description it sounds like you have the Baby Jogger City Elite and jump seat? Anyway, that and most strollers in that category really are more like 1 1/2 than full doubles. You need to decide how often you will be out with both and how big of a rider your older one is. At only 19 mo's you will probably be better off with a full time double stroller and there are many great options out there (and many that aren't!). Feel free to give me a call and i would be happy to go through a bunch of options with you. I own a baby store in South OC and we specialize in strollers and offer free consultations. If you are close to our area you can come into our store where we have all the strollers to check out in person and you can even rent a stroller for the day to make sure you end up with the perfect fit for your family!

Best of luck on your search and with the baby!
K.
www.octraveltykes.com
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